Melodies of Life
by psychedelic aya
Summary: [One-shot. ZidanexDagger. Ending spoilers.] Another story on how Zidane gets back from the Iifa Tree to his precious Dagger.


**author's**** notes : hey everyone! aya on-line here! I hope you liked my other FFIX story, which is ****'If only tears could bring you back'. I really liked that song, hehehe! Anyway, I thought of this fic while listening to the piano soundtrack of FF9! I just bought it!! MWAHAHAHAHAHA! Melodies of life is track number 14, for all you people who are confused. It's so beautiful! I could listen to it loads of times! LoL! Anyway, here's the story! I hope you like it! Please read and review! I know that I'm not a good writer, so its okay if you say its bad!**

**DISCLAIMER :** I own nothing related to FF9. This is a fiction story made up by my dellusional mind. 

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**Melodies of Life**

by aya_yahiko

"Song contest! Song contest!" a young boy shouted, as handing out flyers. He gave one to a young lady, who was in a light blue cloak (w/ hood). Her face was not shown, though when ever her face directed to the sunlight, her pale pink lips could be seen. She read the flyer out loud, as holding it with one hand. 

It said :

**Song contest**

**VENUE : _Alexandrian Castle_**

**TIME : _before the play 'I want to be your Canary'_**

_Girls & boys of all ages_

_are_ permitted. You may__

_register_ back of the Tan-__

_talus_ ship.__

_Thanks._

"Song contest,..." the hooded girl said, as letting the wind take the flyer from her hand. She stood in place, her cloak moving swiftly with the breeze. Her hand came up to her face, so that it could tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. After what seemed to be a bit of thinking, she ran to the direction of the acting ship, bumping a few people in the way.

~~~~~~~~~~

"We're almost there..." he heard himself whisper to the great golden ostrich-like animal he was riding. "C'mon Choco, I know we can do it!" he then shouted, making the animal or 'Choco' a bit frightened. The passenger noticed this, so he murmured a "Sorry" while chuckling. The chocobo seemed to playing 'angry' with him, and so it turned away. It was about to snort, when suddenly its master gave it some of its food. He made a happy 'kweh!' before trotting to their destination.

The young lad on Choco gave a sigh, before singing a song under his breath.

****

**_A voice from the past, joining yours and mine_**

**_Adding up the layers of harmony_**

**_And so it goes, on and on_**

**_Melodies of Life, to the sky beyond the flying birds,-- forever and on._**

Choco heard him, and began to laugh (just imagine how chocobo's laugh). It was obvious that he coudn't sing very well. The young teenager noticed this, then began poking Choco before saying, "Hah! Wait till we get to Alexandria! You'll hear her voice sing this song! I tell you, its the most beautiful melody your ears will ever witness."

The chocobo just sighed, knowing he was thinking about her again. He needed to get these 2 lovers together again,... and it should be as soon as possible.

~~~~~~~~~~

"So whats your name?" She heard a Tantalus member say to her.

"Uhh-- its,..." she was beggining to get nervous, she forgot to think of a name! _'Oh no!' she thought. She couldn't use her real name, it would be to obvious. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he popped into her mind. She then remembered the perfect name. The name he had given her._

"My name is,..." she began, as looking down to the Tantalus member she knew as Cinna.

"So what will it be?" she heard him reply, as taking out his pen.

She looked at the paper, thinking if she was really supposed to do this. After a few moments, she managed to blurt out, "My name is Dagger."

She looked down to Cinna, only to find him staring up at her. He paused for a moment, examined her face, then wrote her name in the paper. "Okay, you'll be the last to perform, right after Ruby there." 

"Alright." she said, as exiting the room. 

When she got out, she heard a voice from behind her, "Don't worry, he'll be back."

She turned around, only to find Blank, the best friend of her loved one, staring at her.

"He promised, didn't he?" he asked as leaning on the door. 

"Yes, he did." she said, as nodding her head.

"Then he'll be back. He won't let no over active 'I-want-to-kill-you' tree (a.k.a Iifa Tree) stop him from getting to you."

She smiled under her cloak, then bowed before running towards the city.

"Man, that girl has flipped." Blank muttered as opening the doors. "I'm supposed to be bowing to her, 'cause she's the queen and all, but she's doin' it the other way around." 

~~~~~~~~~~

**_(LATER)_**

It was nearly her turn, so she gave the notes of her song to the pianist. She looked at him as he studied it, then waited for his approval. When she saw him nod, she returned another nod with a smile. She stood there, behind the curtains, at the back stage, waiting for her name to be called out. She heard Ruby's song finish, meaning she was nearly up. She looked around, only to find the leader of Tantalus, Baku, laughing.

"Gwahahaha!" he said, as walking towards her. He placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Good luck! An' don't ya worry, he'll come back! Gwahahaha!"

Dagger smiled, then heard Blank, who was the emcee, call out her name.

"Now, lets give a round of applause, to Mrs. Tribal---_*hehe* ah, I mean Dagger."_

Dagger went to the stage, gave a stern look at Blank, who held out a 'peace' sign. She smiled at him, then remembered that before each contestant sings, they would give a speech for the audience.

"Uh---Hi!" she started, as grabbing the mike. She saw many familiar faces in the crowd, (of course, as the queen, she must know her subjects!) but she saw some special people, and they were either smirking at her, or simply smiling and waving at her. These people were her old comrades, namely Vivi, Eiko, Regent Cid and his wife, Hilde, Amarant, Freya, Sir Fratley, and of course, up in the balcony, where she was supposed to be, were Steiner and Beatrix.

She continued her sppech, making sure that the cloak was hiding her identity. "Good evening. I'm singing the song 'Melodies of Life', and I'm not sure if many of you have heard of it yet." she paused, took in a breath, then continued, "This is for all my friends, especially the one that I had lost,..." she couldn't continue anymore, thinking of him made her cry. She gave her signal to the pianist, who started playing. When she heard her cue, she began to sing: 

**_Alone for a while I've been searching through the dark,_**

**_For traces of the love you left inside my lonely heart._**

**_To weave by picking up the pieces that remain,_**

**_Melodies of life - love's lost refrain._**

Dagger felt a breeze come upon her, making her shiver because of the coldness. She looked at the audience, they seemed to be listening attentively. _'Oh well,...'_ she thought, as smiling behind the mike_. 'I have to continue after all.'_

****

**_Our paths they did cross, though I can not say just why._**

**_We met, we laughed, we held on fast, and then we said goodbye._**

**_And who'll hear the echoes of stories never told?_**

**_Let them ring out loud till they unfold._**

****

**_In my dearest memories, I see you reaching out to me._**

**_Though you're gone, I still believe that you can call out my name._**

_'This song is for you Zidane.'_ she muttered in her mind, her eyes forming crystal-like water. It was true, she thought. The song was true. She knew he was gone, but she still believed,... she believed that he could come home and take her in his arms. But believing or hoping wasn't reality. She knew she had to accept that he was dead, but she couldn't, well, at least not now. She had to finish this song. For him.

****

**_A voice from the past, joining yours and mine._**

**_Adding up the layers of harmony._****__**

**_And so it goes, on and on._**

**_Melodies of life, to the sky beyond the flying bird - forever and on._****__**

"Can you hear that Choco?" the young genome exclaimed as standing up on the poor chocobo. "Its the sound of Alexandria!! Were home!!" he jumped off his ride, patted it a few times before running off towards the castle. He was so excited, he was going to see her again. He shouted a loud "THANKS A LOT CHOCO!!" before disappearing from the animal's sight. He ran & ran, not thinking anymore. He just had to get to her. Thats all that mattered. 

When he got nearer to the castle, he saw a great HUGE ship blocking the castle gates. He stared at it for a moment, then recognized it. "The Tantalus ship! YAY!"

He ran towards the ship, bursted through doors, bumped a few people, until he found his best friend. He nearly squeezed him to death. "Blank! I've missed you so much!!"

"Wowowow!!! Ouch!" the red-haired teenager said, as spinning around and holding his head. "That hurt!" he exclaimed, as rubbing his back. "Who the hay are you anywa---" he said as he looked up only to find himself looking at familiar emerald green eyes. In fact, it was too familiar. "ZIDANE!!" he shouted, as running to his friend and rubbing his head. 

"Hey! Stop that!" Zidane exclaimed as wincing. He looked at Blank suspiciously, then rubbed his friend's head with his hand. "HAH! GOTCHA!"

The 2 friends laughed, it was like the old days. "Hey man, all of us have been worried about you!" Blank said, as retrieving his sanity. "What happened to that thong-guy anyway? Did you save him? Did he live?"

"I'll tell you sometime," Zidane replied, as relieving himself from laughter. "it's a looooong story. So, whats been happening here?"

"Well nothing much, but there are some people who have been looking for you so."

"Really? Like who?" Zidane replied, hoping that his friend would say the answer that he wanted. 

"Well, if you listen to the voice outside, you'd find out."

****

**_If I should leave this lonely world behind,_**

**_Your voice will still remember our melody._**

**_Now I know we'll carry on._**

**_Melodies of Life, come circle round and grow deep in our hearts, as long as we remember._**

Zidane smiled. He knew that song, he knew that voice. "Its Dagger." he murmured, as singing the last words of the song with her. 

Blank smirked at his friend. He knew that Dagger & Zidane loved each other very much, so he decided to tease them a little. "Yup! That's your Dagger alright! A.K.A Mrs. Tribal!! HEHEHEHE!"

"BLANK!!!" Zidane shouted as once again strangling his buddy. He really didn't mind Dagger being called 'Mrs. Tribal'. It kinda sounded nice to him...

Suddenly, when the two were strangling, Baku entered the room. "HAH! I see your back." he said, as holding a black cloak (w/hood). He shoved it to Blank, then left the room after saying "Blank, you know what to do." 

"What did that mean?" said Zidane, who was still pinning Blank to the ground.

Blank gave a lopsided smile at him before saying, 

"You'll see. Hehehe, you'll see."

~~~~~~~~~~

Roars of applause were heard all through out the audience. Many were shouting, standing up from their seats, and even some were throwing coins or roses at her. 

_'They must've liked the song very much.'_ Dagger thought to herself, as lowering the mike. She had finished the song, with no mistakes or what-so-ever. She had done it. She had accomplihed something for him_. 'If only he WERE here_,...' she thought, as sighing. _'Oh well, better get off the stage then.'_

She bowed politely, some strands of her hair escaping her face. She could still hear the cheers of the crowd as she exited back stage. 

"Great show hun!" Ruby said as hugging her the moment she entered the curtains. "You'll surely win!" 

Garnet smiled at the warmth of her friends hug. She returned it while saying "Thanks." then went off to the back of the ship. The winners were going to be announced after the play anyway. And besides, she had to get changed to her formal attire. 

As she exited the ship, she bumped into someone wearing a cloak just like hers. "Forgive me,..." she said, as feeling a strange warmth from the strangers skin.

As she looked back, she saw him bow to her as saying, "Don't worry, M'lady, there is nothing to forgive." 

Garnet gave a slight nod at him, though she was still confused by his words. _'There is nothing to forgive...' those words troubled her head. She didn't know what it meant, but she didn't care. All that mattered now was that she should get changed, show her face to the nobles, watch the play, go to her room, and ponder on her mixed feelings. She would cry if needed, then sleep. Yup. Her life for tonight was planned._

~~~~~~~~~~

"HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU!!??" Blank's shout echoed throughout the whole ship. He wasn't really the type of person to get mad, but Zidane just got on his nerves sometimes. "The line is, 'Since the SUN lends me no ear, I pray to the twin moons! Grant me my only wish!'," He paused then spoke, "Its not 'since the MOON lends me no ear', okay?"

"Okay, okay." Zidane said, as controling his laughter. He had always wanted to mess up Marcus' lines, and now he got to do it. "Hehehe, c'mon Blank. You know I was just playing. I know the lines by heart."

"Good." He heard his friend say as pouting. "I don't even know why I bother helping you."

"Hehehe,...." Zidane said as peeking through the curtains. His joyous expression changed when caught a glimpse of his beautiful Queen, who was obviously controlling her tears. "Hey Blank?" he said, as closing the curtains and turning towards his friend. "Why is she crying?"

"Huh? Who? Who's crying?" the crimson-haired teenager replied, thinking it was Ruby.

Zidane looked down to his feet, with a guilty expression on his face. 

"Its Dagger. She's crying."

**_(If you have ever read, 'If only tears could bring you back; that's my other story, you know that I got this part from there.)_****__**

~~~~~~~~~~

_'I hate you Zidane.'_ Garnet's thoughts said, as she clenched her fist. She couldn't watch the show that well, 'cause her thoughts were all focused on one man, one young genome who had stole her heart. 

"Zidane,..." she said out loud, not caring if anyone would hear her. "I can't hate him,..." she thought out loud, as salt water escaped from her eyes. "I love him too much,..." 

As she wept up in the balcony, she didn't notice the scene of the play changing. It was already her favorite part, so Beatrix nudged her in order to inform her. 

"Your Majesty,..." she started, as bending down to her queen. "Its already that part,..."

Garnet looked down from the balcony, seeing that Beatrix's information was correct. "Thank you Beatrix,..." she murmured, as noticing her friend withdraw from the royal seats. She looked down again, only to be surprised because the actor playing Marcus had changed. It wasn't the usual Tantalus Marcus, but a man in a cloak. 

_'Hey, wait a minute!'_ Dagger exclaimed in her thoughts, as her eyes grew wide. _'Isn't that the man I bumped into awhile ago?'_ she began to recall what happened to her just a few moments after she finished her song, and she also the words that that man had said to her :  

**_'There is nothing to forgive...'_**

She still didn't understand what it meant, when suddenly, it hit her. _'There is nothing to forgive,...' did that mean he liked the fact that he bumped her? Was this guy some sort of pervert? _'Grrr,...'_ she thought. She would ask Blank who this guy was later. At the moment, she decided to enjoy the show. _

She realized that it was her favorite part, so she decided to listen carefully. 

"Since the sun lends me no ear," she heard the actor say as moving his hands upward. "I pray to twin moons! Grant me my only wish!" 

She really liked the line that was coming next, and she had no reason why. The tale 'I want to be your Canary' was much like hers & Zidane's story of love, only she was Marcus (cause she's the one waiting) and Zidane was Cornelia (cause he was the one who disappeared). She had waited for so long for Zidane,... but everyone said he was dead. _'He can't be,...' Garnet said in her thoughts. _'He has to be alive. He---'__

Her thoughts were cut off when she heard it.

"Bring my beloved Dagger to me!!"

~~~~~~~~~~

She wasn't sure of what happened, 'cause she wasn't thinking anymore. All that she knew was that she was running towards him. Towards Zidane. He was back. Back from that stupid lifa tree and from all the things that had been hindering them to be together. He was here, right now. Right before her very eyes. 

As she ran, she felt the Alexandrian jewel (her pendant thingy) leave her skin. She looked as it flew back, making it several inches from her. She then looked at the stage, where Zidane was waiting. She had to chose,... royalty? Or Zidane?

It was a very obvious descision. She left the Falcon's Pendant down on the ground, as she continued running. Running and running. It seemed like forever. As she reached the steps of the stage, she grabbed her crown, threw it down the ground then jumped into the arms of her loved one, causing an impact that made them spin around.

"Dagger I---" she heard him say, but she cut him off by pounding on his chest. He accepted every bit of pain that she gave him, knowing that those bits of pain would never compare to the pain he gave her by leaving.

When she finished her pounding, she broke down, releasing all the tears she had held back before. She rested her head on his chest, as he tightened his embrace on her. He let his hands run down her hair, as his chin rested on her head. 

As her tears subsided, Garnet looked up, only to find herself drown into his deep emerald green eyes. She had so much to say to him, her feelings, what happened after he left, how everyone was doing. But she couldn't. She had sensed that he wanted to speak, so she let him go first.

"Dagger, I'm so sorry." said Zidane as locking his eyes with hers. "I should've never left you."

Despite all her tears, Garnet managed a smile. A geniune smile she had reserved just for him. 

"I love you." she mouthed as giving Zidane as kiss. He accepted it, and wrapped his arms around her waist. Behind them the crowd cheered, as a little black mage and a purple haired summoner came up the stage, carrying the treasure of the royal family.

Zidane and Dagger broke the kiss, oblivious of the world around them. For a moment, they stared at each other, unknowing of the presence behind them. When they looked back, they found Vivi & Eiko smiling at them, their hands containing the pendant.

Zidane loosened his embrace at Garnet, then began heading towards the 2 youngsters. He gave them a smile, as he bended down and reached for the pendant. They handed it to him, eyes pleased and smiling. He gave them each a pat on the head before saying 'Thank you'.

He then headed back towards Dagger, who never moved from the spot she was standing on. He came face to face with her, as wearing the pendant around her neck. The crowd cheered even louder, and Regent Cid, who was among them, shouted "Hail to the new King of Alexandria!!!" Soon, everyone was doing it, but Dagger and Zidane didn't mind.

"I love you so much. " Zidane said as holding her tightly, as if never wanting to let go. "I don't know what would've happened to me if I was never able to return."

Suddenly, Dagger realized something. A question then popped into her mind.

"But, how did you return?" 

"Thanks to Choco. And, I sang your song."

"Really?"

"Yup."

"But there's a correction."

"What?"

"Our song." 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

^_^x I revised it!! 

***MELODIES OF LIFE HERE IS FROM THE PIANO VERSION THAT'S WHY IT'S SHORTER***

**authors**** notes : okay, okay. So I know I write bad! WAH! But please do bear with me! Its okay if you say its bad, cause I know no one's perfect. So please, read and review!! **

I revised this fic because when I wrote this I didn't finish the game yet! But now, I already finished it! MWAHAHAHA!

**_Hi to my GARDENER!!! And to my fellow flowers, Sampaguita, Kalachuchi, Kampuput,Gumamela, Bougainvillea, and of course to our FERTILIZER!!!_**

****

**_Hi to te Jac! Yo Tere! Hey te Kris!_**

****

**_Hi to Deo! Hi to No2! Hi to David! Hi kuya Edward! Hi Luke! Hi Mickey! Hi to Kuya Chev! Hi to John & Jeorge! _**

****

**_Thank you!!_**


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